Joshua John Miller
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Joshua John Miller | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 26, 1974 Los Angeles, California |
| Years active | 1982 - 1991 1999 - 2006 |
Joshua John Miller (born December 26, 1974) is an American actor, screenwriter, novelist, and filmmaker.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
[edit] Personal life
Miller was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Irish-American actor and playwright Jason Miller (best know for his role as Father Damien Karras in The Exorcist), and Jewish-American actress and Playboy pin-up Susan Bernard (known for her role in Russ Meyer's Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!). Miller's half-brother is actor Jason Patric, and his maternal grandfather was photographer Bruno Bernard, a.k.a. "Bernard of Hollywood".
[edit] Career
Miller started appearing in films and television when he was eight years old. His first film role was in Halloween III: Season of the Witch. He would go on to star in such films as River's Edge, Near Dark, Class of 1999, and Teen Witch. He also made guest appearances on several popular television shows, including 21 Jump Street, The Wonder Years, The Greatest American Hero, Highway to Heaven (for which he received a Young Artist Award in 1985), and Growing Pains. Miller appeared in several plays, and was involved in dance from a very early age. He starred in the Los Angeles Ballet Company's production of The Nutcracker for three consecutive seasons beginning at age seven, and later appeared as a dancer in Janet Jackson's Grammy Award-winning Rhythm Nation 1814 video.
Miller attended Yale and Antioch Universities and studied creative writing at UCLA. In 1997, he published a pseudo-autobiographical novel called The Mao Game about a fifteen-year-old child star attempting to cope with heroin addiction, memories of past sexual abuse, and the impending death of his grandmother, who has been diagnosed with cancer. In December of 2003 he completed his MFA in creative writing at the University of Iowa. He was awarded the Capote Fellowship, and was also chosen for The Houghton-Mifflin Fellowship Award. He has written articles for Harper's Bazaar and Playboy.
In 1999, The Mao Game was adapted into a film, written and directed by Miller, and co-produced by Whoopie Goldberg. The film starred Miller, Kirstie Alley, and Piper Laurie, and featured Miller's mother, Sue Bernard, in a brief, uncredited cameo. The movie toured the festival circuit and garnered mixed reviews from critics, but as of this writing it has not received a wide theatrical release and is not available on VHS or DVD. Laurie won an American Independent Award and a Golden Space Needle Award for her performance in the film.
Miller plans to direct a film based on the short story "Minnow" by Ayelet Waldman. He is also appearing as Jinky in the remake of H.G. Lewis's Wizard of Gore. His second novel is titled Ash.
[edit] Filmography
- The Wizard of Gore (2006)
- The Mao Game (1999)
- And You Thought Your Parents Were Weird (1991)
- Death Warrant (1990)
- Class of 1999 (1990)
- Meet the Hollowheads (1989)
- Teen Witch (1989)
- Near Dark (1987)
- River's Edge (1986)
- Stoogemania (1986)
- The Fantastic World of D.C. Collins (1984)
- Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)
